Jeff Jackson is the director of field operations for the Oklahoma City Comets (Triple-A), and he takes care of any and all things field-related.
“I manage non-overseeded hybrid bermudagrass,” said Jackson. “We have Tahoma 31 on infield and foul territory, and TifTuf in the outfield.”
Maintaining a high-quality field without overseeding isn’t a common practice in the transition zone.
“Not overseeding is kind of a big deal down here,” said Jackson. “A lot of people in the transition zone are using ryegrass and similar things, but with Foliar-Pak products, we’ve been able to recover a lot quicker.”
Jackson was introduced to Foliar-Pak after connecting with his distributor rep at a couple of SFMA conferences and picking up some brochures.
“I started seeing Foliar-Pak more on social media,” said Jackson. “Other sports turf managers were using it, along with lawn care professionals and golf course superintendents, so I decided to give it a try.”
The Comets started putting down Foliar-Pak products primarily to help their new sod establish.
“In 2023, we really started focusing on the Grow-In product. We also tried out Amperage and Foundation Forty,” said Jackson. “We were growing in a new infield and foul territory with Tahoma 31 after a winterkill event. So, we were trying to get the sod established, and get good coverage and density.”
While sod establishment was the initial reason for giving Foliar-Pak a try, our products, specifically Grow-In, are now a vital part of Jackson’s field maintenance strategy.
“After aeration or high-traffic events, we put it in the tank,” said Jackson. “We get really good recovery, especially on aeration holes, and you can definitely tell that we’ve had a lot better root density with it. It has all the nutritional advantages that you could want in a product, and it has really paid dividends in our program.”
Jackson had this to say to other sports turf managers who are on the fence about trying Grow-In:
“I think you definitely need to give it a shot, especially if you’re sodding or performing other cultural practices. Whether it’s verticutting or aeration, I definitely would recommend Grow-In, and I think the results speak for themselves.”
Jackson sees Grow-In’s ability to boost recovery as the main benefit for busy fields.
“We start playing high school games on the very first day of March, and we play roughly 15 high school games before the [Triple-A] team even gets here,” said Jackson. “And then, on top of our 75 Triple-A games, we’re probably looking at well over 100-110 games and events on this field from March through October.”
With such short windows to recover, Grow-In steps up to the plate.
“Grow-In has helped our grass establishment and recovery windows reach the professional baseball level and standard that we’d like to have consistently throughout the season,” said Jackson.
We wish Jackson and the Comets the best of luck this season! To learn more about Grow-In, check out our product page and reach out to your distributor rep.
